Woman Faces Felony Charge After Boca Raton Nightclub Altercation

Waldete Goncalvez (Photo: Palm Beach County Jail)

A 47-year-old Boca Raton woman was arrested early Oct. 3 after police said she attacked another woman in the restroom of a downtown nightclub and ripped a necklace from her neck during a dispute involving a shared romantic connection.

Waldete Goncalvez was charged with robbery by sudden snatching, felony criminal mischief and simple battery, according to a Boca Raton Police Department arrest report. She was arrested at 1:01 a.m. at Cosmo’s Nightclub, 99 SE First Ave., and booked about 10 minutes later. She was unarmed, police said.

Officers were called to the club shortly after midnight for a reported physical disturbance. The woman who called police told an officer that her ex-boyfriend’s girlfriend had attacked her inside the establishment. According to the report, the woman said she was walking to the restroom when a stranger asked her, “Why did you block me on Instagram?” She told police she was confused at first, then realized the woman was the girlfriend of her former boyfriend.

The woman alleged that when she tried to walk away, Goncalvez grabbed her by the arm and dragged her into the restroom. She told police Goncalvez then asked whether the necklace she was wearing had been bought by her ex-boyfriend and pulled it from her neck, scratching her in the process. When she grabbed Goncalvez in an attempt to get the necklace back, she alleged, Goncalvez grabbed her arm again and bit her finger.

The responding officer reported seeing redness on the woman’s neck and left forearm, along with a small cut on a finger of her right hand. The officer wrote that the marks appeared consistent with a fresh injury. The woman gave police the necklace, which was visibly broken, and said it was worth about $2,600.

Because of a language barrier, the arresting officer was unable to speak with Goncalvez, who is a Brazilian national, in English. A second officer, who communicated with her in Portuguese, relayed her account.

Goncalvez told police the other woman entered the restroom to antagonize her, but acknowledged grabbing the necklace from the woman’s neck, according to the report. She said several people intervened and separated them, after which she handed the necklace to another woman in the restroom.

The arresting officer then read Goncalvez her rights, translating them verbatim into Portuguese from a department-issued card. Goncalvez said she understood them and asked for an attorney, and officers ended the questioning.

A club staff member also spoke with police at the scene, the report said. She told officers she heard a commotion from the women’s restroom and went to investigate, then saw Goncalvez pulling the necklace from the other woman’s neck and that when she asked Goncalvez for it, Goncalvez deliberately broke it by pulling it apart with her hands. The woman said she collected the broken pieces and returned them to the owner. She declined to give her name and asked to remain anonymous, police said.

Goncalvez was ultimately released on $16,000 combined bail for the three charges.